Much like this sentence, I am short.

I have been on the short end of the stick my entire life, which I once thought was a good thing, but I was enlightened that was not the meaning of the saying later on. 

Being short gets a bad rap. People who are short are often made fun of or thought of as lesser in more than a physical way. 

I’ve heard my fair share of short jokes, including invitations to work at Santa’s workshop around the holidays, and to explain the weather “down there.”

On the first day back from Christmas Break during 7th grade, I was walking back from lunch when Ben Fleming, an 8th grader, walked up to me in the hallway. 

“How was Santa’s workshop? He asked. “Are you happy to have a break before going back for next Christmas?” 

I proceeded to push him into a wall, which earned me a talk with Mr. Kloosterman on how to manage my short temper. 

However, I felt no remorse. Ben had always made fun of me for several things, including my height, on numerous occasions. 

I had reached my limit, albeit a much shorter limit than others. 

Picture someone doing something cool, are they saving a cat from a tree? Are they dunking a basketball? What about grabbing a bag of chips from the top of a shelf in the supermarket? If your answer is yes, chances are you aren’t thinking about someone short. 

However, there are lots of short and cool people that you may have overlooked, maybe literally. 

Perhaps one of the greatest short people you might not have realized was Alexander the Great. Conquering the world at just 5-foot-2, he may have controlled large amounts of Europe, while also needing help getting on and off his horse. 

If you want a musical short-king, I bring to the table several options. Seven-time Emmy winner Prince was just 5-foot-2, Kendrick Lamar, controversial yet 17-time Grammy winner, is just 5-foot-5. In conjunction with those two, Bono contributed 22 Grammys while standing at merely 5-foot-5. 

So you may be asking, “What is the point of telling a story about being bullied for being short?” or “Why should I care about famous short people?” 

And my short answer to that question is, “Why shouldn’t you care about famous short people or a story about a mean, yet funny short joke?”

Short people are people too. Short people make the world go around, even if we are a bit closer to it than the average person. 

It may be fun to fire jokes at the shorter kid in your class or workspace. After all, it is low-hanging fruit, which feels like exactly the cliché to use. 

But on the other hand, shorter people did not choose to be short, and they have definitely heard more than their fair share of short jokes. 

Finally, they might happen to be one of Santa’s little helpers who could determine whether or not you get a lump of coal on Christmas morning.